Technology as a Learning Tool

Teachers at Riley High School use various technologies to enhance instruction. Teachers have access to interactive whiteboards, computer projectors, large screen T.V.s and DVD players. Microsoft programs such as Excel, Access, PowerPoint, Publisher, and Word are used by teachers to provide lectures, to create assignments, or to collect and organize instructional data and student progress. The South Bend Community School Corporation and Riley High School have moved to a web-based grade book that allows parents and students to access student progress and to allow stuff throughout the building to record data and track trends related to instruction, behavior, achievement, and demographics.

Students also use technology for daily learning. Students use technology to review lectures, complete assignments, and to organize and to present information representative of their learning. Students have access to computers in the library, in four computer labs, and in their English classes. Some assignments require students to use PowerPoint for project demonstrations and reports Microsoft Word is also used for written assignments and on-line testing.

Riley High School faculty provide consistent, clear understanding of what students are expected to learn, so teachers and parents know what they need to do to help them. Technology allows us to create robust and relevant opportunities that build knowledge and skills that our young people need for success in college and in careers so they are fully prepared for the future in the global economy.

Indiana's move to the Common Core Standards establishes a framework of increasing complexity in what students must be able to create and understand so that all students are ready for standards also mandate certain critical types of content for all students, including the use of technology.

Just as media and technology are integrated in school and in life in the twenty-first century, skills related to media use (both critical analysis and production of media) are integrated throughout the Common Core Standards.

The Standards stress not only procedural skill but also conceptual understanding in order to make sure students are learning and absorbing the critical information they need to succeed at higher levels. In anticipation of the Common Core Standards, Riley High School's Technology Plan chooses to be proactive with integrating technology school-wide now so that students do not experience a lag in instructional strategies when they are accountable for Common Core achievement.